justice

The annual observance of the UN International Day of Peace, September 21, 2018, will once again be greeted by a Proclamation from the Mayor’s Office to “commemorate and strengthen the ideals of peace both within and among all nations and...

The water crisis in Flint, Michigan is without question one of the most serious man-made disasters in recent memory. Most of us undoubtedly have seen news reports of brown, brackish tap water, bags of hair, skin rashes, marches and protests, crowded...

I work at The Rapidian now and have for about three years, but before I was a staff member, I was a community journalist. The second article I wrote on The Rapidian was an opinion piece detailing why I thought banning panhandling was a terrible idea...

This holiday season, support incarcerated folks by joining us for Season For Solidarity!
Join us this Friday, December 15, 2017 from 5 p.m.-9 p.m. at Plymouth Congregational UCC (4010 Kalamazoo Ave SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49508) for A Season for...

Will you act now to stand with the immigrant children of God in Grand Rapids?
Click here to quickly, easily email the City Commission and join us today to show support at the City Commission.
Some of our most vulnerable, immigrant...

Yesterday, after months of fighting in court, the City was forced to release 5 recorded phone conversations between Officer’s Adam Ickes, Thomas Warwick, and the now fired Lt. Michael Janiskee. These conversations were related to a November...

On Tuesday, April 11, 2017, the Grand Rapids City Commission meeting at 7 p.m. was packed to overflowing with people sitting in the aisles, standing in the corners and spilling out into the hallway. Concerns over cuts to housing funding and a recent...

In the age of co-opted movements for the sake of advertisements gone terribly wrong (hey Pepsi, what's good?), the best way to look at a community’s commitment to equity is to look at the way it treats its organizers.
My time in Grand...

The new web show Mixed Reviews Grand Rapids will tape its next episode, about gentrification in Grand Rapids, in front of a live audience this Thursday. After the initial conversation between the two guests, the audience will be invited to interact...

At a roundtable discussion recently facilitated by MiBiz, small business owners raised their concerns about equity issues in West Michigan. As Grand Rapidians head into 2017, how is systemic bias perpetuated, even as our awareness of barriers grows...